Samsung LN-T4061F 40 Inch LCD Television Teardown

Overview / Main Features

The Samsung LN-T4061FX is a 40 LCD TV with a full HD LCD panel (native 1080p (1920 x 1080 pixel) resolution) from Samsung (LTA400HT-L01). Of course, it also supports all HD standards (480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, and 1080p). The Samsung has the following display features: 500 nits brightness, 2000:1 contrast ratio (dynamic ratio = 10,000:1), 16.7 million colors, 178/178 degree viewing angle, and an 8ms response time. The 4061 (vs 4065) has a matte, anti-glare screen as well (vs. gloss).

It has a tuner which is capable of analog and full digital NTSC/ATSC with QAM. The LN-T4061FX features four internal speakers capable of (2 chanels, 10W ea) outputs with SRS TruSurround XT support in a 2.2 Channel fashion. A wide variety of input / output ports are present on the LN-T4061FX, which includes HDMI, component, S-video, optical digital audio out, serial (15-pin D-Sub), and the standard analog / coaxial signals.

This LN-T4061FX TV and it's specs are all very similar to other Samsung LCD TVs recently analyzed. In fact, internally, this TV shares most of the same core ICs and even some system level components (tuner, power supply) with other models. Samsung clearly strives for maximum component commonality for cost leverage.

Samsung LN-T4061F 40 Inch LCD Television Main Image

Mid-range LCD TV consumers.

Released

The Samsung LN-T4061FX was released in 2007 - no specific dates found, however it appears to have been in Q2, 07.

Pricing and Availability

MSRP - $1,699.99 (USD) - Per Samsung website at time of writing (2/08). However, this model, as is typical, despite the MSRP can be found online from multiple e-tailers for pricing as low as under $1100 (USD).

Availability - The Samsung LN-T4061FX is available to the United States market and readily available at retail electronics stores and online retailers.

Volume Estimations

For the purposes of this teardown analysis, we have assumed a lifetime production volume of 100,000 units.

As a reminder, teardown volume production assumptions are primarily used for our cost analysis in terms of amortized NRE and tooling costs, especially for custom components specific to the model being analyzed (mechanical components especially). Unless assumed volumes are different by an order of magnitude, minor changes in volume (say 1 million vs. 2) rarely have a large net effect on our final analysis because of this.

Samsung LN-T4061F 40 Inch LCD Television - Main PCB Top

Main Cost Drivers

Display

Samsung - LTA400HT-L01 - LCD Display Unit - TFT, WUXGA, 40' Diagonal, 1920 x 1080 Pixels (16:9), 0.461mm x 0.461mm Pixel Size, 16.7M Colors, 2000:1 Contrast Ratio, 500cd/m^2 Brightness, 8ms Response Time, Active Area: 885.6mm x 498.2mm - Qty(1)

Power Supply

Hansol LCD - SIP460A - Power Supply Line item - Qty(1)

Main PCB

Genesis Microchip - SGP10 - Video Processor - Digital Cinema Reality Engine, Support Full HD - Qty(1)

Samsung Semiconductor - DNVS227IH262A - ATSC Tuner Module Value Line Item - Qty(1)

Samsung Semiconductor - S4LF111X01 - DTV MPEG Decoder - ARM Powered - Qty(1)

Ki-Joo Industrial - 4-Layer - FR4, Lead-Free - Qty(1)

Samsung Semiconductor - SDP64 - Digital Natural Image Engine - Qty(1)

Micronas - MSP4450K - Audio DSP - Demodulator, Decoder, and Baseband Audio - Qty(1)

Sillcon Image - SiI9125CTU - HDMI Receiver - V1.3, Dual Input, DVI 1.0, EIA/CEA-861D, HDCP 1.1 - Qty(1)

NeoFidelity - NTP-3000 - Digital Audio Amplifier - Single Chip, Integrates DSP & Digital PWM Modulator - Qty(1)

Enclosures / Mechanicals

Enclosure, Main, Rear - Injection Molded Flame Retardant ABS-Polycarbonate, Clear Coat - Qty(1)

Enclosure, Main, Front Bezel - Injection Molded Flame Retardant ABS-Polycarbonate, Clear Coat, Silkscreened - Qty(1)

Front Bezel Bottom Cover - Injection Molded Flame Retardant ABS, Chromed, w/ PSA - Qty(1)

Enclosure, Stand, Top - Injection Molded ABS-Acrylic Plastic, Clear Coat - Qty(1)

Conductive Cloth Laminate - Die-Cut, w/ Foam Rubber Insert & PSA - Qty(2)

Stand Mounting - Injection Molded ABS w/ Insert Molded Die-Cast Metal - Qty(1)

Materials and Manufacturing $779.02

Samsung LN-T4061F 40 Inch LCD Television Cost Analysis

The total materials and manufacturing costs reported in this analysis reflect ONLY the direct materials cost (from component vendors and assorted EMS providers), AND manufacturing with basic test. Not included in this analysis are costs above and beyond the material manufacture of the core device itself - cost of intellectual property, royalties and licensing fees (those not already included into the per component price), software, software loading and test, shipping, logistics marketing and other channel costs including not only EMS provider and the OEM's margin, but that of other resellers. Our cost analysis is meant to focus on those costs incurred in the manufacture of the core device and exceptionally in some circumstances the packaging and literature as well.

Manufacturing Notes

Country of Origin / Volume Assumptions

Based on markings, the unit was assembled in Mexico (which is typically the case for Samsung TVs we see in the US). Furthermore, we have assumed that custom mechanicals (plastics, metals, etc.) were sourced in Mexico as well based on the markings found on the parts. We assumed most of the PCBAs were populated in Korea and final assembled into the main enclosure in Mexico.

Country of origin assumptions relate directly to the associated cost of manufacturing, where calculated by iSuppli. In the cases of 'finished' sub-assemblies (such as can tuners), we do not calculate internal manufacturing costs, but rather assess the market price of the finished product in which case country of origin assumptions may or may not have a direct effect on pricing.

Remember also that labor rates are applied directly only to hand inserted components and systems in our bill of materials, and although regional assumptions do, these new rates do not have a direct effect on our modeled calculations of placement costs for automated SMD assembly lines. ""Auto" inserted components (such as SMT components) placement costs are calculated by an iSuppli algorithm which allocates a cost per component based on the size and pincount of the device. This calculation is affected by country or region of origin as well.

Design for Manufacturing / Device Complexity

The Samsung LN-T4061FX LCD TV has a total component count of 1929. This total represdents the sum of all discrete components, BUT accounts for the power supply and LCD panel as single items. This total count is comparable to other LCD televisions - such as the Toshiba 42HL167, and Vizio GV47L both in the 1900 - 2000 range.

Component counts have a direct bearing on the overall manufacturing cycle times and costs, and also can increase or decrease overall yields and re-work. Our calculations of manufacturing costs factor counts and more qualitative complexities in the design. Note that manual labor has a much smaller effect on auto-insertion assembly lines (for the Main PCB, for example), where manufacturing costs are much more capital equipment intensive and driven by these investment costs.

Design Notes

Having seen a number of Samsung LCD TVs by the time of this analysis, it is worth noting that though differences exist between different Samsung models, for the most part there is a great deal of commonality of the core ICs between models, and we tend to see the same core silicon used over and over again. This benefits Samsung from a cost perspective, by allowing them to leverage volumes in purchasing.

The core silicon is from Samsung and Genesis Microchip: an SGP10 Video Processor (in collaboration with Genesis Microchip), the SDP64 which provides Samsung's core proprietary image processing, and the S4LF111X01 ARM powered DTV MPEG decoder chip. In addition, Samsung also supplies the ATSC can tuner mounted to the main PCB: DNVS227IH262A.

Other core functionality is supplied by Micronas (Audio DSP MSP4450K), Silicon Image (HDMI Receiver Sil9125CTU and TMDS Switch Sil9185CTU), and NeoFidelity (Digital Audio Amplifier - NTP-3000).

Here is a summary of the major components used in Samsung LN-T4061FX LCD TV design:

Display

Samsung - LTA400HT-L01

TFT - 40' Diagonal

1920 x 1080 Pixels (16:9) / WUXGA

0.53mm x 0.53mm Pixel Size

16.7M Colors

2000:1 Contrast Ratio

500cd/m^2 Brightness

8ms Response Time

Active Area: 885.6mm x 498.2mm

Main PCB

Audio/Video Processing

DTV MPEG Decoder - Samsung Semiconductor - S4LF111X01 - ARM Powered

Video Processor - Samsung Semiconductor - SGP10 - Digital Cinema Reality Engine, Support Full HD

Digital Natural Image Engine - Samsung Semiconductor - SDP64

Audio DSP - Micronas - MSP4450K - Demodulator, Decoder, and Baseband Audio

Front-End

ATSC Tuner Module - Samsung Semiconductor - DNVS227IH262A

I/O & Interface

HDMI Receiver - Sillcon Image - SiI9125CTU - V1.3, Dual Input, DVI 1.0, EIA/CEA-861D, HDCP 1.1

Digital Audio Amplifier - NeoFidelity - NTP-3000 - Single Chip, Integrates DSP & Digital PWM Modulator

Microcontroller - Weltrend - WT61P6S - 8-Bit 8051 Compatible Processor

TMDS Switch - Sillcon Image - SiI9185CTU - HDMI 1.3, 3-to-1

Memory

SDRAM - Qimonda - HYB25DC256163CE-4 - 256Mb DDR SDRAM, 250MHz (Qty: 2)

SDRAM - Samsung Semiconductor - K4D551638H-LC50 - GDDR1, 256Mb, 16Mx16, 200MHz, 2.7V (Qty: 2)

Flash - OneNAND - Samsung Semiconductor - KFG5616U1A-PIB5 - 256Mb (16M x 16), 54MHz, 3.3V - Qty(1)

Flash - Spansion - S29AL016D - 16Mb (2M x 8/1M x 16), 3V - Qty(1)

Power Supply

Hansol Electronics / Hansol LCD, Inc. - SIP460A - Multi-Output

Samsung LN-T4061F 40 Inch LCD Television - Box Contents